Like last year, it’s time to look back and see what 2012 has offered – and in this post, I will be sharing my top 100 picks from varies categories; skincare to nail polishes, you name it.

It’s always very difficult to pick a handful of items I like. I spent the past 2 weeks making and narrowing down the list and I hope you will find products featured in this entry interesting – products that you would like to try or you are also loving too. Or if you would like to see a review of any items, please let me know.

I have inserted relevant links to swatches, reviews, information and/or looks for your reference.

All mentioned items are those I have enjoyed – some may be new releases or generally items I have discovered along the way or re-discovered from my stash. I have added filters to the pictures so they don’t look so worn out – note that colours are no longer truly accurate.

BEST OF 2012

JOEY’SPACE TOP 100 PICKS

MAKEUP PRIMERS

I realised I haven’t been very crazy with makeup primers lately. I have used up a few but I haven’t replenished any yet – currently trying to finish up all the remaining.

• RMK Creamy Polished Base in 00 – all-rounder, smooths out skin surface for foundation
• Clinique Pore Minimizer – works so well for hiding open pores especially around the nose and cheeks
• Guerlain Météorites Perles Light-Diffusing Perfecting Primer – perfect for layering under a semi-matte or velvet finish foundation for that glow from within complexion, I like the gel texture
• Shiseido White Lucent Brightening Spot-Control Base UV in Ivory – all-rounder, great for evening out skin tone
• Giorgio Armani Light Master Makeup Primer – texture is light and fluid, great for evening out skin tone and perks up complexion

FOUNDATIONS

2012 has been a great year for foundations and I went a little crazy but fortunate to be able to try as much as my face can handle. I bought a few to replace some of my most used foundations.

• Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Even Finish Foundation SPF 15 – semi-matte finish, medium to full coverage and long wearing, I enjoy wearing this when I know I will be running around
• Dior Diorskin NUDE Skin-Glowing Makeup SPF 15 – almost similar to their older version, texture of this is a tad less fluid but great buildable coverage, anything from sheer to medium with a very natural, healthy, glowy finish
• Shiseido Radiant Lifting Foundation SPF 15* – great coverage of medium to full and long-lasting power, easy to blend and stays fresh
• Clarins Skin Illusion Natural Radiance Foundation SPF 10 – smells fresh and gives a natural radiance finish, perfect for everyday use
• RMK Liquid Foundation – very easy to blend, evens out skin tone and is able to conceal flaws with its medium coverage

BB CREAMS

Have been trying lots of BB Creams this year – am a late bloomer when it comes to BB Creams but I want to share my favourites with you before all the CC Creams start launching – I know Lancôme has already launched theirs and Chanel will do so too, very soon.

• Sulwhasoo Snowise Whitening BB Base SPF50+ PA+++ – light and provides enough coverage to even up my skin tone and conceal certain spots, love that it brightens up my complexion
• Ettusais BB Mineral White SPF 45 PA++* – dewy finish with long-lasting glow, I love the all day freshness it provides but lacks a little in oil-control
• Ettusais BB Mineral Cream – great coverage like a foundation, good in oil control and it’s long-lasting too
• Dior Diorsnow UV Shield BB Creme SPF 50 PA+++ – perfect for wearing under a powder foundation or if your skin is good enough, simply dust some loose powder over
• Bobbi Brown BB Cream SPF 35 PA+++ – it’s hydrating but provides very little coverage, great for under powder foundation or lazy days, this replaces my moisturizer and sunscreen

LOOSE POWDER/COMPACTS

Great to know that some of my favourite foundations now comes with their matching loose powder or compacts. It’s nice to wear them together because they are meant to be.

• Dior Diorskin NUDE Compact* – light and sheer, great for touching up throughout the day without caking
• Clarins Skin Illusion Loose Powder Foundation* – offers sheer to medium coverage, like that it has a semi-matte finish and decent in oil control
• Lancôme Teint Miracle – light and very finely milled, pairs perfectly with its foundation
• YSL Semi-Loose Powder Natural Radiance* – loose powder made portable, swirl for product and great for travels, sheer coverage, light and doesn’t cake
• Ettusais BB Mineral Powder – medium coverage and light on the skin, provides a matte finish, great for outdoors

CONCEALERS

I have been planning to do a concealer post for – forever but I haven’t gotten around it. I don’t have very dark under eye circles thus my concealers are mostly medium in coverage. Here are my favourites for concealing anything and everything on my face.

• Chanel Le Blanc Whitening Concealer – comes with a sponge applicator, light coverage but brightens up the under eye area
• Giorgio Armani High Precision Retouch – perfect for makeup bags, touch-ups on the go because it comes with a tiny brush applicator
• Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer – have been using for years and I am still loving, medium coverage with rich creamy texture, easy to blend and doesn’t crease under the eyes
• Dior Diorskin NUDE Skin Perfecting Hydrating Concealer – great for concealing around the mouth and cheeks, areas which is dryer or flaking
• Shiseido Natural Finish Cream Concealer – great coverage for spots and scars

BLUSHERS

I had a hard time picking items for this category, I have been enjoying so many blushers but these are the ones I enjoyed most. There’s something special about each of them – to me.

• Tom Ford Cheek Color in 03 Flush – my first Tom Ford blush and it’s a perfect pink-coral with gold shimmers, very versatile
• Givenchy Le Prisme Blush Bucolique in 2 Bucolic Poppy – love the glow and hue
• Guerlain Blush Duo in 01 Peach Boy – sometimes, peach/coral blushers will look “yellow” on me but this doesn’t and it comes with a choice, wear it matte or add some shimmer, love it
• Dior Rosy Glow Healthy Glow Awakening Blush in Petal – pink blush, awesome technology and innovation behind it
• Giorgio Armani Écailles Face & Cheeks Duo Palette – need I say more? the perfect vintage rose

HIGHLIGHTERS

This category was easy to pick although I like plenty of highlighters released this year, I knew exactly which are my favourites.

Here, I have a range of highlighters offering varies intensity. Burberry’s very subtle as compared to the rest. Clé de Peau BEAUTÉ’s very sophisticated and refined whereas Bobbi Brown’s slightly more bold and metallic. NARS’ glittery and Guerlain’s creates a soft “wet-look” feel.

• Burberry Sheer Summer Glow Natural Highlighting Compact
• Bobbi Brown 24 Karat Shimmer Brick
• Clé de Peau BEAUTÉ Luminizing Face Enhancer in № 12*
• NARS Highlighting Blush Powder in Miss Liberty
• Guerlain Météorites Cruel Gardenia

CREAM EYESHADOWS

I have been enjoying a bunch of cream eyeshadows too and here are some worth a mention or two.

• Shiseido Shimmering Cream Eye Color in OR 313 Sunshower
  
• Chanel Illusion D’Ombre in 87 Riviére
• Dior 1 Couleur Eye Gloss in 560 Tan
• Estée Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Shadow Creme in 08 Blue Velvet
• bareMinerals Prime Time Primer Shadow in Urban Nature

SINGLE EYESHADOWS/PIGMENTS

Eyeshadows are difficult to pick because they are so many shades, so many brands and so many different textures and finishes. In terms of quality, colour payoff and the frequency of me using them, here they are.

• NARS Shimmer Eyeshadow in Lhasa
• Burberry Sheer Eyeshadow in 21 Midnight Brown
• Lancôme Ombre Hypnôse in I202 Erika F*
• Illamasqua Pure Pigment in Ore
• Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill in 20 Obsidian Black

EYESHADOW PALETTES

I haven’t been purchasing that many eyeshadow palettes as I thought I did – hmmm, surprised. So this category was easy to pick based on if I can only have 5 eyeshadow palettes, what would they be?

• Tom Ford Eye Color Quad in 01 Golden Mink
• Lunasol Petal Pure Eyes in 02 Clear Pink
• Estée Lauder Pure Color Five Color Eyeshadow Palette in Violet Underground*
• Regard Signé de Chanel Quadra Eye Shadow in Harmonie Du Soir
• Dior 5 Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette in 774 Golden Savannah

EYELINERS

I hardly talk about eyeliners because, I use them but find them difficult to review – because I usually apply eyeshadow over to softly smoke out the edges. These are the shades I have been enjoying, they are creamy and easy to blend.

• Make Up Store Eye Pencil in Chocolate Cheesecake*
• NARS Larger Than Life Long-Wear Eyeliner in Rue Bonaparte
• YSL Waterproof Eye Pencil in 1 Black Ink
• Dior Diorshow Liner Waterproof in 258 Turqoise
• Chanel Stylo Yeux Waterproof in 84 Taupe

BOLD LIP COLOURS

Bold lips, filled with confident and character – I believe everyone have a red, be it a sheer red gloss, an orange-red, a plum-red or a bright chilli red. Find your red and you will never look back.

• Shiseido Lacquer Rouge in RD 607 Nocturne*
• Lancôme L’Absolu Créme de Mat in 300 Magie Pourpre*
• YSL Rouge Pur Couture The Mats in 201 Orange Imagine
• Burberry Lip Velvet in 308 Pink Azalea
• D&G The Ruby Lipstick in 180 Ruby

NUDE LIP COLOURS

Besides owning a red that suits you, nude lips can never go wrong. Personally, I don’t go for any shades that’s too nude and pale, I like them with some sort of a shiny sheen and a bit of colour – can be towards pink, beige or brown. Which are your nudes?

• Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Natural in N5*
• Lunasol W Gloss Lips in EX 01 Beige x Light Pink
• MAQuillAGE True Rouge in RD 712*
• MAQuillAGE True Rouge in BE 361*
• Lancôme Rouge In Love in 272N Bubbly Beige*

NAIL COLOURS

I couldn’t narrow down to just 5 so I have 10 for this category. All of them have brilliant quality and formula, nothing but love.

• YSL 1 Rouge Pop Art
• Chanel 637 Malice
• Chanel Délicatesse
• Chanel 607 Delight
• Illamasqua Creator*
• Rescue Beauty Lounge Ghost
• Deborah Lippmann Don’t Tell Mama
• Estée Lauder Blue Blood
• Dior 671 Graphic Berry
• Dior 158 Calypso*

SUNSCREENS

Never ever leave home without a sunscreen. I have a more in-depth post on sunscreens, if you have missed it, click right here.

• Clarins UV Plus | HP Day Screen SPF 40 UVA-UVB / PA+++*
• Origins™ Dr. Andrew Weil Mega-Bright Skin Illuminating UV Protector SPF 40 / PA+++*
• Ettusias Base Version Up UV SPF 20 / PA+
• Philosophy Take Shelter SPF 50 UVA-UVB / PA+++*
• Kiehl’s Ultra Light Daily UV Defense SPF 50 UVA / PA+++

SKINCARE

I don’t have good skin and I broke out twice this year due to switching and testing products. Each time my skin break out, I learn something new and these 5 amazing skincare items helped me recover. I am glad they worked for me.

Note to self – skincare should be easy and simple, no more layering 3 serums at one go Joey.

• Lancôme Génifique Youth Activator*
• Lancôme Visionnaire [LR 2412 4%] Advanced Skin Corrector
• Clarins White Plus | HP Whitening Velvet Emulsion*
• Dr GL® Skin Repair
• Clarins Blue Orchid Face Treatment Oil*

EYE CARE

Eyes are the windows to the soul thus eye care is extremely important. It’s always better to prevent than to cure so before all my wrinkles and crows feet appear, I shall try my best to delay them.

• Dior Capture Totale Eyes Essential – must be worn under an eye cream; to test its effectiveness, try with and without, I spotted differences especially when worn with Kiehl’s Midnight Recovery Eye
• Origins™ Plantscription Anti-Aging Eye Treatment – one of my all time favourite eye care products
• Kiehl’s Creamy Eye Treatment – breaks down to a watery fluid, easy to absorb and my eyes feel hydrated instantly
  
• Lancôme Génifique Yeux Light-Pearl™* – love the applicator, easy to maneuver and the cooling stainless steel help reduce puffiness and brightens up the eyes
  
• Kiehl’s Midnight Recovery Eye* – wake up to “younger” looking eyes, best paired with Dior Eyes Essential in my opinion

LIP CARE

I can’t remember when I started caring for my lips, I never seem to pay much attention before I started blogging. So, the blogosphere has changed me and I have become a lip balm addict.

• By Terry Baume de Rose
• Chanel Hydramax + Active Nutrition Lip Care
• Ettusais Lip Essence*
• Dior Addict Lip Glow SPF 10
• Kiehl’s Eucalyptus Lip Relief

FRAGRANCES

I know very little about scents before I started blogging and I still don’t know a lot but I know what I like now. And am willing to explore.

Scents are very, very personal. What I like may not be your cup of tea and it’s fascinating how one scent can smell different on two person. I have acquired a whole new library of scents in my little makeup room and my collection has grown. Here are the five I am liking lately.

• Penhaligon’s Artemisia EDP – a scent that’s close at heart, not something that leaves a trail; floral and powdery
• Penhaligon’s Jubilee Bouquet EDT – my first Penhaligon’s and it’s so captivating, I miss it on days without it; floral and very powdery
• Maison Francis Kurkdjian APOM Pour Femme EDP – oh my, this scent kept me wanting for over half a year; APOM stands for “a piece of me” and yes, I finally own a piece of you; burst of freshness with a powdery dry down
• Dior New Look 1947 EDP* – came as a surprised, I am usually drawn to powdery scents but I guess it’s the Indian Tuberose; floral and woody
• MEMO Inlé EDP* – this scent grew on me, I didn’t like it at first but as I was trying it, the smell lingers and took my heart away; fresh floral with a bit of musk and spice

—————————————-

Hope you have enjoyed this post as much as I had going through my drawers and shortlisting them. Initially, I was thinking there is no way I am going to find 100 products to talk about but as I go along, it’s not that difficult. In fact, I have more from missing categories like hair, body and nail care.

Shall save those for upcoming posts.

What are your favourites this year? I would love to know, please comment below with a link if you have written about them.

Thank you for looking.